Series 11 Results - Sebring

 

The FRL's 11th season makes another stop at the famed Sebring raceway for round 2 of this multi-class season. The qualifying results in the DP Prototype class would be a foretaste of what was to come. The #18 and #2 Corvette's would post times in the low 1:52's, with the advantage going to Travis Billingsley, giving him his second Pole starting position in this FRL season. In the GT class, Bryan Dean set the pace with a class leading 2:06.520 to start in P1 in class. 

 With the grid set and pace lap completed, the DP's rolled across the Start/Finish line and took the green flag for the 40 minute event. Travis and Ghabe gave each other a wide berth heading into Turn 1, which Ethan Maestri in the #3 Ford DP took immediate advantage of, passing both Chevy's to take the lead early. For the next 20 minutes, an intense battle would unfold for these three DP cars. While Travis hunted for a line around Ethan, Ghabe sniffed for a similar opportunity to sneak around Travis. At times, a blanket would have covered all three cars on track. Ghabe was able to take advantage of a slight bobble from Travis and passed for P2.  On lap 8, Ghabe got a massive jump out of Le Mans and powered around Ethan on the Ullman Straight but held off on the brakes just a smidge too long into Sunset Bend, allowing Ethan to undercut him and power into Turn 1 to retake the position. That would prove to be the only other pass for the lead in the race. But the place swapping for P2 and P3 would continue, ultimately leading to further errors (and the eventual lag-out by Ghabe) which allowed Ethan to eventually win the race.  

 In the GT class, Bryan would set sail from the green flag, leaving four other drivers to sort P2 out amongst themselves. Matt Smith, in his #12 RSR held onto that P2 spot tightly for several laps. But an eventual off-track excursion opened the door for others to snatch the position from him. Paul Maestri in the #7 BMW M6 would spend the early laps stalking Seth Jensen's #6 Ford GT, eventually passing him and both he and Jensen where able to quickly overtake Matt. Seth would hang onto Paul's bumper for most of the race, however, the jumble from the overtaking DP class caused him to lose his grip on Paul. For his part, Paul set about slowly closing the gap Bryan initially enjoyed. But time ran out before a battle could develop. In the end, Bryan took his first class victory in the #808 Porsche RSR. 

 The series heads for the California sun for Round 3 at Long Beach on November 14th.

Results:

DP Class

1. Ethan Maestri - 50 points

2. Travis Billingsley - 40 points

3. Ghabe Stouffer - 35 points

GT Class

1. Bryan Dean - 50 points

2. Paul Maestri - 40 points

3. Seth Jensen - 35 points

4. Matt Smith - 32 points

5. Nicholas Hargrove - 30 points

Points Standings after 2 events:

DP Class

Travis Billingsley - 90

Ethan Maestri - 90

Ghabe Stouffer - 85

GT Class

Bryan Dean - 90

Paul Maestri - 75

Seth Jensen - 65

Matt Smith - 62

Nicholas Hargrove - 52

Tony Tyree - 28

Brandon Adkins - 26

 

Series 11 Results - Daytona

 It has been a busy week to start the eleventh season of the FRL. The final prep for and the running of the first race in the series at Daytona was as frenetic as could be expected. Behind the scenes though, much hand-wringing and discussion was taking place due to an unusual set of circumstances. Fortunately, all was able to be sorted in due order and since the checkered flag flew over the 45 minute event, some significant changes have transpired.

 For the race, in the DP class, all unfolded as expected. As the green flag waved, Travis Billingsley was able to secure his pole position and quickly began extending his lead over the only other car in the class, Ethan Maestri's #3 Ford. Travis' #18 Chevy was able to run cleanly throughout the event and crossed the line nearly 20 seconds ahead of his competitor. 

 In the GT class, the Porsche's had their day on a circuit well suited to their speeds. Bryan Dean was able to finish with a P2 in class despite several hairy moments on track. Paul Maestri was looking good for a P2 finish, but instead had to pit late and yield that position to Bryan. He would finish on the podium in P3. Ghabe Stouffer truly dominated the event, leading from pole and finishing P1. Less fortunate drivers like Nick Hargrove's #5 Corvette would experience bad internet and was disconnected early in the race. Brandon Adkins in his #8 Ford GT would suffer from a bought of narcolepsy and crashed out later. 

 Post race, the FRL made the decision to move Ghabe Stouffer from the GT class into the DP class, partly due to his dominating performance, but mostly in order to preserve the entry list at four. His points from the Daytona race are unaffected and places him alongside Travis after this first event at 50 points apiece. The next race will take place October 31st at Sebring.

Daytona Results:

DP Class 

1. Travis Billingsley - 50 points

2. Ethan Maestri - 40 points

GTLM Class

1. Ghabe Stouffer - 50 points

2. Bryan Dean - 40 points

3. Paul Maestri - 35 points

4. Matt Smith - 32 points

5. Seth Jensen - 30 points

6. Tony Tyree - 28 points

7. Brandon Adkins - 26 points

8. Nicholas Hargrove - 24 points

Series Points:

DP Class 

1. Travis Billingsley - 50 points

2. Ghabe Stouffer - 50 points

3. Ethan Maestri - 40 points

GTLM Class

1. Bryan Dean - 40 points

2. Paul Maestri - 35 points

3. Matt Smith - 32 points

4. Seth Jensen - 30 points

5. Tony Tyree - 28 points

6. Brandon Adkins - 26 points

7. Nicholas Hargrove - 24 points